Mass Transit Affirmative BDL 2 | P a g eSummary This affirmative argues that the current focus on transportation infrastructure puts too much emphasis on highways and cars making it harder for poor people to get to work and have economic opportunities. Because it is expensive to buy and maintain a car, the focus on highways and roads at the expense of public transportation is discriminatory against poor and minority communities. The affirmative plan is to increase investment in mass transit infrastructure. Mass transit includes things like buses and subways/light rail. This kind of infrastructure can transport many people at a lower cost and can increase economic opportunities for all. Besides reinforcing segregation, a lack of mass transit also has other negative effects. The reliance of cars increases air pollution because driving a lot releases a significant amount of exhaust. Additionally, when people drive all the time, they walk less making them more likely to be overweight. The culture that surrounds cars also has the effect of disconnecting us from one another, unlike mass transit where people are more likely to talk and interact when put into close quarters. Finally, decreasing reliance on cars could help encourage people to stop living in environmentally destructive suburbs and instead move back into the city, decreasing urban sprawl.